From the desk of Rabbi Yosef Sanders
Unorthodox Confessions of an Orthodox Rabbi
There is a well-known story of the Rabbi who was a hopeless golf addict. He absolutely could not miss his game, even for a single day.
And so, on Yom Kippur, when he must be at Synagogue all day, with no other options, he rises at dawn and makes his way out to the course.
The ministering angels in Heaven are furious; what a disgrace and disrespect to the sanctity of the Holy Day!
G-d reassures them, "My Hosts, just wait and see what I have planned for him."
To the utter astonishment of the angels, however, the Rabbi scores a beautiful hole-in-one! The angels are agog! Why is Heaven rewarding him for his indiscretion, instead of punishing him?
G-d explained, "You simply don't understand; who's he going to be able to share this achievement with?!"
Although an Orthodox Rabbi is commonly expected to spend his day closeted in his study, pondering the wisdom of old, receiving members of the Congregation, and only leaving to visit the sick and etc., I have a confession to make (just please don't tell the Board!). To some extent, I spend some of my time following the stock market.
Although I am far from an expert, and cannot offer advice other than one should take care and do their due diligence, I believe there are some thoughts that circulate in the investment community that can inform our lives as Jews today.
One idea is that it is valuable to learn what "those in the know" are investing in. Those who have a depth of knowledge and understanding in a particular area are surely going to act in accordance with the quality info that they have, and it is worth paying attention to where they are putting their money.
This escalates into the dynamic known as "doubling down", where the above - referenced "in-the-know" investors, at a later point, come back and invest even more in the original "ticker", indicating an even greater confidence in the underlying security.
It can certainly be said that the G-d showed great confidence in Israel by entrusting this nation with His greatest gift to all humanity, the Torah, at Sinai.
But then, eleven months later, the Medrash tells us that He "doubled down".
In the Torah Reading the Shabbat immediately preceding Shavu'ot, the Medrash details a great Chupah event between G-d and His Chosen People.
The Medrash describes a vision the Jewish People viewed at Sinai: G-d descended upon the mountain, flanked by 22,000 Ministering Angels.
The People of Israel saw this, and requested to "receive the Torah in similar fashion". G-d swore He would grant this request, and this is symbolically represented by the formation of the encampment in the desert, described also in the above Reading. The Tribes of Israel camps surround the "Camp of Holiness", with the Tabernacle and the Camps of the Priests and Levites in the central hub.
The Commentaries explain that the identity of an Angel is that the D'var Hashem, the Word of G-d, permeates its entire being, and its entire exisitentiality is inseparable from the Divine Word.
This is what Israel asked for at Sinai, and its initiation is delineated every year, immediately prior to the Festival celebrating the Receiving of the Torah, Shavu'ot.
The story is told of a young man who was having a difficult time finding a Shidduch (marriage partner). His Rabbi brought him to Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky, a great Torah giant in Israel today. As soon as he walked in, the Rabbi told him that his trouble was that he eats meat and milk together.
The young man was incredulous, protesting that he certainly doesn't do that; he keeps the Laws of Kashrut!
The Rabbi asked, however, how long he waits in between (the common practice being six hours).
The student replied that he actually didn't wait; he washed his hands, rinsed his mouth, and ate a solid food to clean out the meat remains.
The Rabbi indicated this was the issue; one should conduct oneself according to the common practice.
After he had gone, Rabbi Kanievsky realized that those in attendance were staring at him in shock; how did he know?!
The Rabbi insisted that he didn't have any supernatural powers. The Zohar states that one who is not careful with these laws has an image of a cow imprinted upon his forehead. So the individual actually informed the Rabbi of the nature of his difficulty when he walked into the room!
I was troubled by this story for a very long time.
Because, in truth, the Law is exactly in accordance with what this young man practiced. The Code of Jewish Law says that the requirement is to clean one's hands, rinse the mouth, and eat something solid to clear away dairy residue. The Code continues on to say that the custom is to wait one hour, and an extra measure of piety is to wait six hours, and this is the proper way. Does he really deserve a cow on his forehead just for skipping a custom?
The answer came to me quite some time later.
The (doubled-down) Jewish way is to cherish every word that Hashem says. His Word is precious, and we value every opportunity to follow it and embrace it. If there is a custom that expresses this burning desire to keep a specific Mitzvah, we grab it with both hands and don't let it go!
This is the sensitivity to Mitzvah that lies within every Neshama, and beats in every Jewish heart. And it is with this feeling that we approach Chag Shavu'ot, as we revisit and re-celebrate receiving the greatest gift to all mankind!
Chag Same'ach, and Happy Investing!
Thank you,
Yosef S
